The Dynamo are focusing on protecting early leads after their last game.
Defeat to Monterrey pinpoints reason for average MLS record
For close to 20 minutes Friday, it appeared the Dynamo would defeat C.F. Monterrey, one of Mexico’s top teams.
But the Dynamo allowed an equalizer in the 64th minute before losing 2-1 in extra time.
The result didn’t shake their seventh-place standing in the MLS Western Conference. It only cost them the Charities Cup in an exhibition match to support KIPP Opportunity Campus. But the way the Dynamo lost was emblematic of why they aren’t closer to Tuesday’s opponent in the league standings.
“The exercise was very positive for us,” coach Wilmer Cabrera said after the Monterrey loss. “We have two games next week on Tuesday and Saturday, so we couldn’t use the players as much as we wanted because we have a commitment and it’s going to be two tough matches that we have to deal with.”
The Dynamo (6-6-3; 21 points) host back-to-back home games against Los Angeles FC (9-4-3; 30 points) then Minnesota United FC (5-10-1; 16). Although the Dynamo are 5-2 at BBVA Compass Stadium this season, their habit of conceding late goals has regularly been the difference between taking three points vs. one (or none).
And since a strong stretch heading into the World Cup, the Dynamo have lost three of their last four league contests, including a 3-2 defeat to Sporting Kansas City in which they allowed all three goals in the second half.
“I think we need to do a better job closing out games, especially when we’re ahead,” fullback Adam Lundkvist said.
Lundkvist, who’s seen increasingly more minutes at right back since joining from Swedish club IF Elfsborg in April, is confident in the team’s offensive production but wants to see the defense tighten late in games.
“You can’t simulate game situations in training,” he said of the benefits of their Monterrey loss. “I think it really helps the team to get fit.”
The Dynamo rank in the top 10 in shots per game and openplay goals scored, primarily thanks to the forward trio of Alberth Elis, Mauro Manotas and Romell Quioto. But perhaps just as crucial to their offensive success has been the development of Argentine midfielder Tomas Martínez.
“The MLS is a faster game, faster pace; it’s not as tactical,” Martínez, who joined the Dynamo from Portuguese club Braga last season, said through a translator. “Thankfully, I’ve been adapting well and I feel like an important part of this team now.
“It’s going to be an important game for us to get the three points. This is going to help us keep progressing as a team.
“We’re going to be better organized on all the lines. You’re seeing in the World Cup that the little details can kill you. We’re halfway through the season, so we can still work to get better.”
Martínez reiterated Lundkvist’s idea that Friday’s match helped prepare them for the MLS competition ahead. They’ll have to slow the second-highestscoring team in the league Tuesday to recapture their winning momentum.
“I think we’re ready,” Cabrera said.